Devotion and Desire
by BumblebeeFliesAnyway
Summary: my summary is a smidgeon long for here so it's in the first chapter. this fic includes haru/yuki, kyo/yuki, yaoi, crazed theater kids, romantic poems, lovestruck teens, a new boyfriend for tohru, and other madness R&R :  rated M for pairings
1. Chapter 1

_Summary:_ Yuki Sohma has quite the life. He's desired by two wonderful boys. One is his predetermined rival and the other has been admiring him for years. When Akito ends up approving Haru and Yuki's new found relationship, Yuki begins to feel trapped. And Kyo's attitude to the subject is infuriating and confusing. When Yuki learns the truth behind his mysterious actions, Yuki begins to question his feelings for Kyo. Can Akito's decisions and Haru's affections leave any room for Kyo and Yuki to be together? And what will happen to Kyo's fate if they do?

_Disclaimer:_ i do not own anything concerning fruits basket. although i wish these characters were mine, sadly they come from the brilliant mind of natsuki takaya.

_Author's Note:_ see how much cooler the summary sounds with all my words and such? :P well i'm hoping you guys like my fic because i've been working on it for a while and i'm sooper excited about it! [note: my spelling and grammar errors in my author's notes don't reflect my writing in the fic] in order for me to know if you do like it, please read and review! if enough of you guys give me good reviews i'll continue posting chapters every friday. enough banter! on with the fic!

**Chapter One**

_**In Which Tohru Is Worried About Yuki's Social Behavior**_

If there was one thing Yuki Sohma wasn't having, it was a good day. For starters, it was way too hot outside, making him stay indoors and unable to check on his garden. The feeling of being cooped up in the four, safe walls of his home drove him insane. With Shigure being the only one around for company, Yuki was sure to lose his mind in a couple hours time. Kyo and Tohru had gone out with Uo and Hana. Leaving the restless Yuki pacing around his room impatiently wondering when the group of friends would be back. This activity was also getting boring so he picked up a gardening book from his shelf and plopped onto his bed and settled into a comfortable position as he began to update himself on new gardening techniques. A couple hours only seemed a couple minutes to Yuki for he was so engrossed in his book that he hadn't even noticed Kyo come into his room. Kyo awkwardly positioned himself at the foot of Yuki's bed which just so happened to be where Yuki's head was. Kyo leaned over Yuki's head and when this gave no response, he pushed up the book. Yuki made no sudden movements. He lifted his big, amethyst eyes to look at Kyo's crimson ones above his head.

"May I help you?" Yuki said dully even though that was the exact opposite of what his heart was. It was anything but dull. Truth be told, Yuki's heart was pounding in surprise, but he didn't want his vulnerability to be shown and was quite surprised he could hide it. His purple eyes narrowed with annoyance in a desperate attempt to hide his emotion. Luckily, he had years of practice under his belt at hiding how he truly felt. But for some reason, those fiery, orange eyes seemed to pierce straight through him and it was those eyes that seemed to make his heart palpitate like that. This wasn't a normal feeling to have, and he was quite baffled by it. Maybe it wasn't Kyo's eyes. Maybe it was just his stomach talking. Yea, that's it. He was just hungry and that was all.

"Yea, Tohru just made food and she wants you to come down and eat," Kyo replied coolly. Yuki shook his head and looked out the window. He hadn't realized that it was so late. Kyo rolled his eyes and sighed in exasperation.

"Right, I'll be right down," Yuki answered in a soft tone. As soon as the reply was given, Kyo stood up, turned swiftly on his heel and exited Yuki's room as if just being enclosed in a small space with him was so intoxicating that he was being deprived of air. This encounter was weird, compared to others. Normally, Tohru would come get Yuki and tell him dinner was ready. Why was it Kyo? Another enigmatic occurrence was that Kyo just sat down on the bed. He _sat_ down like it was the most normal thing in the world for him to do! Well, thinking about it, it _was_ pretty normal, but not on Yuki's _bed_ it wasn't! And then there was the mystery of Kyo not picking fights with Yuki anymore. What was _that_ all about? It wasn't as if Yuki necessarily liked fighting Kyo, it was just more the fact that their fighting had meant so much to the cat and he thought that this activity would continue until Kyo could finally achieve mastery over Yuki – which, of course, would never happen. Yuki just sighed and put all these questions at the back of his mind. He didn't need to worry about these things right now. He was probably just overreacting anyways. Upon the exit, Yuki exhaled slowly and pushed himself up off the mattress. He turned to sit on the bed for a second then stood, taking the book with him. After putting the book in its rightful place on the shelf, Yuki walked out his room and downstairs to dinner.

The dinner table scene hadn't changed much since Yuki's home became a bit more crowded with Tohru and Kyo. Shigure was once again babbling about his newest novel he was writing. It was quite unfathomable why Shigure even bothered to share his ideas for his novels. As much as he tried to make them sound like pure and innocent romances, they only came out to sound raunchy, risqué, and, for the majority, like a porno. Tonight was no exception. Yuki looked at poor little Tohru who kept her mouth shut, but her cheeks blushed innocently.

Now, if Shigure _really_ wanted to sound rather innocent, he could write a love story about Tohru and Yuki and their romance muddled by the omnipresent Kyo. Such an innocent subject, mostly because it involved Tohru and anything she was involved in was never raunchy or anything resembling porn. Now Yuki wasn't sure if he had feelings for Tohru, other than loving her as a son loves his mother. Maybe he should just let Kyo have her; however he didn't seem that interested in her lately either. What a conundrum. A conundrum he'd have to figure out later.

But Shigure simply wasn't that brilliant, and he probably could have even turned something as innocent as that into a porno as well, so Yuki kept his mouth shut.

After dinner, Yuki once again retired to his room. Too bad there wasn't much else to do around the house. Shigure pranced off to gain more knowledge and ideas for his novel while Kyo and Tohru stayed in the sitting room to work on their math homework together. What good that'll do. Kyo wasn't as smart as he believed himself to be and – no offense to Tohru – Tohru always ended up having to ask Yuki for help with her equations.

Yuki knew, after feeling her anxious stare after him, that Tohru was worried about him. He had been shutting himself away more than usual, and it wasn't on accident either. In the recent months Yuki had felt an inevitable closeness form between Kyo and Tohru. How could he even begin to compete against him? After all, the cat was her favorite of the entire Zodiac, even though the cat wasn't technically part of the Zodiac. For all he knew, she could secretly hate the rat for the trick he had played on the cat all those years ago.

Yuki sighed and plopped on his bed, pulling out his homework from his schoolbag in the process. Concentration was near to impossible with all of these impending dooms on his mind. School was the last thing Yuki wanted to worry about.

A soft knock came from the door which immediately told him that it wasn't Kyo, thank heavens. "Come in," He replied just as softly to the knock. Sure enough, Tohru walked through the door. As always, Yuki pulled out his smile that was only reserved for Tohru and sat up on the bed. He tapped the bed next to him indicating that she should sit as well.

Tucking her hair behind her ear, Tohru walked towards the bed and sat down next to Yuki. "Um…Yuki?" Her timid voice was barely audible. Something was wrong. Immediately Yuki's brow rose slightly in concern as he leaned forward a bit more so he could see her face as if it would reveal a secret as to what was troubling her. Of course she had probably already told Kyo so it was secondhand news, but at least he was talking to someone. That was a start. Right?

"What is it, Miss Honda? What's troubling you?" He asked, slight worry rolled off his tongue with his words.

She looked up at him from underneath her bangs. "Well, Yuki, it's you that's troubling me," She replied with a little more confidence.

This took him aback and he widened his eyes in surprise. "Me? Why do I trouble you? Have I said or done anything to you recently that you haven't liked?" As soon as these words formed, he immediately tried to think of anything and everything he could have done that would have upset her. He hadn't fought with Kyo recently so that couldn't have been a possibility. What else could he have done?

Tohru seemed torn. She chewed her lower lip slowly then allowed the full gaze of her brown eyes to be directed at Yuki. She didn't look too particularly happy about worrying him that he was worrying her, but, as usual, Tohru needed to make everything right in the world. "Well, it's just you've been so…distant lately. Kyo asked about you and we were just downstairs talking about it-" _Wait a minute? She's been talking to _Kyo_ about it? Kyo is asking about _me_? Since when does this happen?_ Yuki thought to himself, still trying to keep his purple eyes hidden behind his usual mask. "-and he agrees with me. Something just isn't…right or normal with you recently," She finished with, it seemed, much difficulty. It wasn't easy for Tohru to confront people on such topics. However, if the time called for it, she was just the person to do it. If anyone besides Tohru mentioned this to him, Yuki definitely would have been on the defensive. But Tohru held such a soft spot with Yuki, as well as with all the others in within the Sohma family, except Akito, of course.

This was why, instead of freaking out and getting angry about the information presented towards him, Yuki relaxed and smiled. He took her small hand in both his own and looked into her eyes. "I can assure you, Miss Honda, that I am quite alright," He replied in the silkiest and most convincing voice he could muster. It seemed to have the desired effect.

"Ok, Yuki, I'll take your word for it!" She said, smiling broadly. "However, I'm going to keep an extra special eye out for you-" She peered at him through squinted eyes and poked her index finger at his nose. "-just in case," Yuki laughed in response which Tohru took as a sign to retreat. She got to the doorway and turned around adding an afterthought. "By the way, Yuki, you can call me Tohru. I'm sure I have reminded you that a few times before. But we're going to be watching a movie, Kyo, Shigure, and I. You're welcome to join us if you want," With that she walked out into the hall. She had reminded him many times before, but it just seemed disrespectful to call her that, in his mind anyways.

He glanced around his room: everything was precisely in order and perfectly clean. Maybe Tohru was right and he didn't get out enough. She left him alone, once more, with his thoughts…and his gardening book. Yuki's eyes wandered once more across his impossibly perfect bedroom. This was the thought that ultimately made Yuki scurry downstairs just in time for the movie to start. Being boring was always something that scared Yuki, and he was scared his life was turning out just that way. Tohru was joyous as Yuki came downstairs, as could be predicted from her. Shigure was sidled up next to her on the loveseat, which made Yuki really uncomfortable, while Kyo sat on the sofa. Since he really didn't want to sit on the floor, Yuki did the unthinkable and sat down on the opposite side of the couch Kyo was sitting on. Yuki looked over at Tohru and smiled.

"Miss Honda, why don't you come over and sit by us? I was going to make popcorn and this will make it easier to share," Yuki called softly to Tohru. She smiled back at Yuki and went to go sit between him and Kyo. Shigure shot daggers at Yuki, but he just smirked back at the dog.

"What if I don't want popcorn?" Kyo asked in a smart-alecky tone.

This statement brought Yuki out of his face making war with Shigure. He turned his deep eyes to the other and gave him a blank expression. "Well you don't have to have any if you want to," He replied in an even tone.

Kyo scoffed in return and pushed himself as close to the arm of the couch as was humanly possible. Yuki got up before the movie started and made popcorn. He put it in a bowl and brought it back out so the rest of the residents could enjoy the tasty snack. Shigure ended up sitting on the floor in front of Tohru so he could get two things: popcorn and a backrub. Both Kyo and Yuki looked at him in disgust. As if his perverted ways couldn't get any worse. Despite this common ground of disgust for Shigure, Kyo still appeared to be angry at Yuki for embarrassing him in front of everyone. In his defense, Kyo had been humiliated worse than that before so Yuki couldn't see why this made any difference now. Nevertheless, something was wrong and Yuki was getting the consequences. Yes, instead of staring at the television screen as the rest were doing, Yuki was almost one-hundred percent sure that his rival's gaze was diverted elsewhere. At him.


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's Note: _hey guys! so sorry for late update, some stuff has been going on that has been a detriment to my story :/ but anyhow here's the next chapter of my story ^_^ hope you guys enjoy.

_Warning: _the story doesn't really start to pick up until chapter five. so be patient. i gotta give a little build up first. ENJOY CHAPTER TWO ^_^

**Chapter Two**

_**In Which Yuki Finds An Interesting Reaction to A Simple Argument**_

The next day came quickly. It was a bright, clear Tuesday afternoon. The sun was out, not a cloud in the sky, the birds were merrily singing, and not particularly the day that Yuki would choose opportune for a Student Council meeting. This would be just the type of day he would spend hanging with friends, playing Frisbee outside, laughing gaily…did he really just think that? Yuki shook his head in frustration. Unfortunately, he wouldn't have done any of those things. Why not? Because, as Tohru so happened to point out the night before, he was distancing himself from everyone. As he walked down the hallway to the student council room, Yuki thought of all the possible things he could do if he were normal. However, whenever he thought of normality, the question always arose of "What is normality? And who decides what is normal and what isn't?" To everyone else in Yuki's school, he led a very normal life, a very perfect life with perfect family members. But of course, Yuki didn't see it that way. All he saw were his flaws and his social ineptitude and his strange and rather bizarre family members. Nothing about him was normal. If he was so normal, he would have friends, a girlfriend, a social life outside of picking up Tohru every day after work. But he didn't have any of that. And why not? Because Yuki Sohma had to go and get a rat attachment to the Zodiac Curse. A rat. Of all things! Maybe if he were a dog…wait. That wouldn't do at all. Shigure's the dog and he's a major pervert!

As he neared the room, Yuki quickly pushed all of these thoughts to the back of his mind. He'd have plenty of time to contemplate things later. Now it was game time. He set a blank expression on his face and opened the wooden door that separated the classroom from the hallway. What he opened the door to was usual and unusual all at once. For one thing, the room was littered with school related objects and some non-school-related objects. For another thing, it didn't look as if the usual perpetrator had done it. Machi, the usual suspect, was huddled quietly in the corner, far away from her half brother, Kakeru. Kakeru, however, sat in the middle of the room, tears streaming down his face, knees to his chest, arms wrapped around his knees, crumpled papers still in his balled fists. Yuki sighed heavily and strode over to the despaired youth and squatted down next to him. _Well this is an excellent start to student council_. Yuki thought before placing a hand on Kakeru's back. Kakeru's head popped up, obviously startled, and looked around the room furiously before setting his dark eyes on Yuki's amethyst ones.

"Y-Yuki!" Kakeru sputtered, tears still running hopelessly down his face. Yuki was in no mood to deal with this. The sooner they got out of student council, the better. Then he could go home and tend to his garden, and then his day would have been perfectly fulfilled.

"What's the matter, Kakeru?" Yuki asked, pushing all of his negative thoughts away from his brain. Kakeru didn't seem capable of explaining anything and therefore threw his face back into his huddled arms and started a fresh onslaught of tears. Another sigh accidentally heaved itself out of Yuki before he added, "Kakeru, you can talk to me. We're friends. You know that. And as your friend, I would like to inquire as to what seems to be the matter with you. Something is the matter, isn't there? I doubt you'd be sobbing all the water out of your body if there wasn't," It was just too impossible not to add just a smidge of sarcasm to this equation.

Kakeru responded by sniffing and trying to stop his crying by taking deep breaths. "K-k-k-ko-ko-koma…" Kakeru breathed out in hyperventilated breaths. Luckily, Yuki could semi-make out the word he was trying to say.

"Komaki? Is it Komaki?" Kakeru nodded in answer to Yuki's question, obviously unable to get out everything. "What happened to Komaki? Is she okay?" Kakeru nodded once more and Yuki let out an exasperated breath. "Then what's the matter? We need to get this meeting over with," Yuki said, not meaning to be so blunt and rude.

"Komaki broke up with me," He finally admitted. Yuki sat on the floor next to his friend and shook his head.

He obviously wasn't going to elaborate any further so Yuki took to talking soothingly. "Well, I'm sure she had her reasons. You'll find someone else in no time, Kakeru," In saying this, Yuki felt very feminine and immediately wondered if other guys had to console other guys in their time of need. And if they did, if they said things like Yuki just said.

"But…I won't find another meat girl," Kakeru breathed out another sentence.

"No, but you'll find someone better. And she won't go around breaking your heart," Okay, now this was ridiculous. How come Yuki had to deal with feminine situations? All of a sudden, an idea sparked: Tohru was good with situations like these! "Kakeru, why don't you come over tonight and have dinner with Tohru Honda, my cousins, and myself? I'm sure they'd all be delighted to have you as company, and I bet it would make you feel better. We're having sushi," Yuki said, making sure to sound extra persuasive. It seemed to work because Kakeru agreed as soon as he heard the word _sushi_.

The rest of the student council meeting went swimmingly as soon as Kakeru got his head together at the promise of some of Tohru's cooking, and the walk home wasn't too entirely depressing. Yuki learned about ten minutes into the conversation that Komaki had broken Kakeru's heart last week, the day after the last student council meeting. At this mention, Yuki's eyes mutated into large, amethyst orbs as he gazed at the other boy. He was still crying after that long? Why hadn't Yuki noticed before? Had he even seen him all week? The answer was no. Yuki had been too wrapped up in himself, once more. Man, his social skills were never going to progress if he kept up this kind of attitude. On second thought, he supposed he understood. After all, he and Komaki had been together for quite a long time. There was no possible way you could get over a relationship like that within a week, could you? Yuki sighed to himself softly as he pushed open the door to his house. Shigure was in a red kimono, sitting on a chair, reading the newspaper, with his feet propped up on a basket of clothes, and a glass of orange juice in his hand. Yuki rolled his eyes at his cousin and shook his head, leading Kakeru passed the perverted dog and into the kitchen, after taking off their shoes. The kitchen was busy with Tohru buzzing around, getting things ready for dinner.

"Hello, Tohru," Yuki greeted her in a polite tone. As Tohru once mentioned, he was always so polite with her. Or was it everyone? "You remember Kakeru from school? The student council treasurer?" Yuki added just in case she forgot. She had a tendency of doing that. He motioned to a wide-eyed Kakeru standing behind him. Yuki wasn't exactly sure what he was gawking at, nor did he want to. Kakeru's mind was a rather twisted place.

Tohru, however, lit up at having company. Yuki couldn't tell if she actually remembered him or was just faking in order not to be rude. "Yuki, you called me by my name! I knew you'd warm up to me eventually!" Yuki raised an eyebrow. He was already warmed up to her, he was just polite and old fashioned…since when was that a bad thing? No matter, after a tight squeeze of a hug, she moved on. "Oh yes! Hello, Kakeru and welcome! It's such a pleasure to have you here with us! Do you like sushi and onigiri? I know it's not much, but we haven't been grocery shopping yet, you see…" Tohru kept babbling on in this manner while the two boys stood there politely, taking in all her energy – and, boy, did she have a lot of it.

In response, Kakeru just dropped his jaw while his eyes got wider, if that was possible. "You live here?" Obviously when Yuki said that Tohru Honda was making dinner, it didn't sink in that she actually lived with the Sohma family.

Tohru smiled lovingly, as was her nature. "Yes! And I'm so blessed that Yuki and Shigure Sohma were kind enough to invite me into their home!" Kakeru couldn't seem to grasp this since his dark eyes were popping out of his head while his mouth gaped open. Tohru didn't seem to notice as she continued to smile and go on and on about the Sohma's hospitality towards her and Yuki just stood against the counter, eating a banana, and watched the scene unfold before him. In a few seconds, the news seemed to sink in properly and Kakeru's face returned to normal. He seemed at ease, now, with this set up between the Sohma family and Tohru Honda.

It wasn't long before Kakeru donned on an apron and started assisting Tohru in the kitchen. Yuki took this time to be his usual hermit-like self and went into the study to start his homework. He passed undetected by the other two in the kitchen. They were too busy having fun with knives to even notice him anyways. As Yuki pulled out his math book, he wondered if he really was too reserved and socially awkward. Was it such a bad thing if he was? Maybe that's why he didn't have friends. Yuki sighed in frustration as he worked on the first homework problem he was trying to solve. It aggravated him that he was so detached from everyone and everything when he wanted so badly to be the opposite. He wished he were more like Kyo. Kyo wasn't even that nice and everyone loved him. What was up with that anyways? He had to admit that Kyo had a kind of charismatic confidence, even if Kyo didn't believe in himself. His erratic behavior was always interesting and entertaining and the times where he allowed himself to smile and be happy the world seemed to smile right along with him.

Yuki raised an eyebrow at himself. What was he thinking? He couldn't be thinking these thoughts. And especially about _Kyo_. He couldn't be envious of him; he had to be revolted at the mere thought of him. What was wrong with Yuki today? Something had to be wrong seeing as how he was very contemplative. Where was Kyo anyways? He was usually home before Yuki on student council days. Yuki deeply considered getting up to ask someone about his whereabouts but eventually decided against it. It would be too awkward. Why would he care anyways? Kyo wasn't his problem. It was only after this thought that Yuki glanced back at his math book for another problem only to discover that he did them all, even the ones not assigned. Once again, Yuki let out a sigh. He would look like an over achiever. Again. This is what contemplating did to him.

At this time, Tohru and Kakeru came out of the kitchen to announce that dinner was ready. Shigure emerged from his office in his kimono and stretched with a goofy smile attached to his face. He looked at Yuki and shook his head. With that, he slumped off to the kitchen. Yuki raised an eyebrow and gawked after his cousin before standing up and following suit. He took a seat between Shigure and Kakeru while Tohru brought in the dinner dish: sushi. She set it on the table and sat down across the table from Kakeru and Yuki. The boys started to dig in, getting their fill of raw fish.

"Where's Kyo?" Tohru voiced Yuki's thoughts aloud. "He's usually home by now; do you think something happened?" Once more Tohru took on the role of a worried mother. Yuki appreciated this side of her, she was kind of like the glue of the house, holding everyone together and making sure everything was well.

Shigure and Yuki shrugged. "I don't know, I haven't seen him since this morning," Shigure voiced. "He never said anything about not coming to dinner," This didn't seem to help Tohru's nerves. She suddenly stood up and started panicking, walking around the room frantically, and becoming a nervous wreck. Kakeru sat down and stared at her with a shocked expression on his face while Yuki and Shigure stood up to comfort her. "I'm sure it's fine, he'll be home in no time. Now just sit down and eat your sushi," Shigure said in his most comforting voice. This seemed to help only slightly.

The rest of dinner passed without consequence. Kakeru informed Tohru on the torture being performed on baby seals for their fur. Of course, this made Tohru tear up and she became characteristically interested in saving all the baby seals from the horrendous torture they were unfortunately put through. Even though this wasn't a very funny topic, it was rather entertaining to Yuki and Shigure to see Tohru so passionate about helping the baby seals, or, as she put it, helping the world. She and Kakeru seemed to have made plans to brainstorm ideas to help them get involved while Yuki added that he should get the student council to vote on some way to help. This seemed to make Tohru even more excited than she already was. Soon after dinner, Kakeru said he needed to get home to finish homework. Yuki and Tohru walked him to the door and said their good-byes. It wasn't long after that that Shigure decided he wanted to watch a movie with the two teens, again. Since all the homework was finished, and Kakeru helped with dishes, the two agreed and sat down with Shigure to watch a movie of his choosing. Yuki only agreed after contemplating his previous conversation with Tohru of his being antisocial. And while he had already watched a movie with them the night before, his decision was made all the easier since Kyo wasn't around to distract him. Of course it was a romantic comedy.

"Why do you have to watch romance movies?" Yuki groaned as he plopped on the couch next to Tohru and Shigure.

"It's to get my romantic ideas flowing, dear Yuki," Shigure replied dramatically while gesturing with his hands.

"Why don't you just watch porn then, since all of your 'romantic ideas' pretty much sound like a porno?" Yuki muttered. It wasn't a very good mutter since both Tohru and Shigure overheard. Tohru turned a bright red while Shigure merely chuckled.

"My dear little Yuki, you just don't understand about writing romance. It is not porn, as you might think. It is the passionate unison of two people that happen to be in love with each other," Shigure explained. Yuki just shook his head and directed his attention to the movie.

The movie was pretty lame, to say the least. Everything was completely cliché and in bad taste. Tohru and Shigure, on the other hand, enjoyed it quite thoroughly. Halfway through the movie, Kyo waltzed in through the door. Four eyes darted in his direction, all except Yuki's. Yuki kept his eyes glued to the television, not wanting to look at the cat. Mostly it was out of habit because usually just looking at Kyo instigated a fight, and it was something Yuki was desperate to avoid at the moment. The other reason was because he hadn't had an opportunity to look at Kyo since the night before and he didn't want to change that now. He was terrified to look into those crimson eyes that had been staring at him. A waterfall of questions then was rallied between Tohru and Shigure. Apparently he had been at Shishou's dojo, training some more.

"As if that will improve your pathetic excuse for fighting," Yuki said softly, just loud enough for Kyo to hear. He wasn't exactly sure why he even voiced his opinion. The cat and rat had gotten along so famously really, if you could count completely avoiding each other and not saying anything to each other getting along. He didn't understand his apparently recent desire to stir up trouble. Yuki raised an eyebrow and turned his head slowly to look at Kyo just in time to see all the blood rush to his face in flushed anger. A smirk played on Yuki's lips seeing the cat so flustered. It was rather funny how one comment could erupt an ever boiling volcano.

"Alright, that's it, you damn rat. Get up and we'll see who's better," Kyo got into his normal fighting stance while Tohru started panicking. Shigure sat there with a smug grin on his face, placing his arms behind his head to watch the ensuing action.

"Don't break anything, please," Was his only off-hand warning to the boys. It appeared that Shigure missed the two fighting as well. Not that Yuki had, but it was refreshing to be fighting the other again. It was a human interaction that he didn't realize he needed.

Yuki simply rolled his eyes and sighed. "Haven't we proved this time and time again? It's completely useless to try," He knew his nonchalant, uncaring tone would get under Kyo's skin. And, sure enough, his intuition was right. Kyo's face contorted angrily and he developed his fighting stance while Yuki continued to sit calmly on the sofa. Kyo hissed angrily while breathing as he stepped once more towards Yuki. Yuki simply turned his head a tiny smidge and looked at the other through the corner of his eye. A smirk still played upon his lips. Faster now he was approaching when Yuki stood up swift and smooth. Just as the other boy was in arm's length, Yuki's arm shot out and punched the other in the nose. With that, as Tohru cried in distress and Kyo held his bleeding nose, Yuki walked upstairs and went back into his room.

He could hear Tohru rush over to Kyo's aid and helped him with his nose. He knew Shigure was still sitting on the couch, finishing his movie. But it seemed all Yuki could do was pace around his room impatiently. All the blood rushed to his face. The interaction between the two boys sent a rush through him. It was as if a spark had erupted within his stomach and he couldn't quite place why. Their contact, it seemed, had caused that spark and for whatever reason he desperately wanted it to happen again. The silver haired boy pushed all of the frustrating thoughts behind him and sat down at his desk. Hopefully burying himself in extra homework would distract him.


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's _Note: sorry this is late. i wanted to see if this is really what i wanted to do. and i wanted to get chapter five finished before i posted this but that obviously isn't happening at the moment soooo here's chapter three. this is kind of a transition and filler chapter. 

**Chapter Three**

_**In Which Haru Catches Yuki's Attention**_

"Yuki. Yuki? Yuki! _Yuki_…YUKI…YUKI SOHMA!" A voice was yelling at him from somewhere behind him. Yuki stopped walking and turned around to see who was calling his name so desperately only to find Hatsuharu. Haru jogged a few paces before catching up to Yuki. He greeted his silver haired companion with a pat on the shoulder. "What? You off in your own little world or something?" Haru asked with a grin visible on his face.

Yuki chuckled and grinned easily back. For some reason he instantly relaxed around Haru. "Yea, something like that," Yuki replied and turned to walk in step with the cow.

"Where you off to?" He stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"Math class," His voice became a bored monotone even though it was his favorite class.

Haru laughed and ruffled Yuki's hair. "Don't lie. You know you love math,"

"You know me too well," Yuki looked sideways at the other and grinned. They conversed in small talk until Yuki got to his math door. Haru leaned against the wall just outside the door frame, hands still in his pockets.

"Hey, Yuki, I miss hanging out with you," The cow said softly, tilting his head ever so slightly to the side.

Yuki blushed faintly at the random comment. "Yea, me too," He replied delicately.

"We should hang soon."

"Yea. Let me know," Yuki blinked and rushed into his classroom. It was all completely normal until the end. The way Haru looked at him. Something was up. What was up with the people in his life lately? First Kyo was acting weird with his sitting on the bed the other day, and then Tohru randomly commenting on his behavior, and now Haru. The only one that was really acting anywhere near normal was Shigure and he was as far from normal as they come. Yuki tried to shake off his thoughts during class but something kept gnawing at him. He was dismayed to come to find that it was Kyo's eyes boring into his the other day that was occupying the majority of his thoughts. What was wrong with him?

"Yuki? Yuki Sohma?" A voice called to him, pulling him from his thoughts. He shook his head and came back to consciousness. He looked around only to notice that all of his classmates were out of the room and it was only him and his teacher. His teacher raised an eyebrow at him and Yuki smiled sheepishly. "Is there anything you'd like to discuss, Mister Sohma?" He asked quizzically.

"No, not right now, thank you," Yuki answered, quickly gathering his things from the desk and shoving them into his schoolbag. He walked out the door and found Haru leaning against the wall as he had done earlier. Now _that_ was weird. Haru hadn't met Yuki outside his classroom in a long time. Yuki looked at Haru and continued walking, knowing Haru would catch up. "What's up?" Yuki asked the other boy who fell into step with him.

"Oh not a whole lot," He replied in a bored tone, staring at his fingernails. Yuki shook his head and grinned.

"You're worse than a girl sometimes, you know that?" Now it was Haru's to smile.

"Yea, shit happens," The pair continued to walk together. Luckily school was over and they got to go home. Yuki went to the entrance of the building and stopped as usual. He normally stood and waited for Tohru and Kyo so they all could walk home together. Haru, of course, stopped and waited with him, for reasons completely unknown to Yuki. Yuki nodded his head absently to a story that Haru was telling, searching desperately for his two home companions to appear. It wasn't as if he necessarily wanted to part Haru's presence, it was just that he needed to get home and think. His brain was whirling with Tohru's words, Kyo's actions, Haru telling him he wanted to see him more, the energy he felt when he punched Kyo's nose, the stupid romance movie playing last night, Haru's smile, how easy it was to hang with Haru, his garden, Kyo's beautiful crimson eyes…wait, Kyo again? His _beautiful crimson eyes_? Did that thought really just happen? Yuki shook his head violently, causing Haru to take a step back.

"Yuki, are you ok?" He asked in a concerned voice, taking a cautious step back towards Yuki.

"Yea, I'm fine. What were you saying again?" He said convincingly enough, apparently, because Haru continued right where he left off – or maybe it wasn't where he left off seeing as how Yuki really wasn't paying that much attention.

Tohru eventually sprouted from the crowd. Unpredictably enough Kakeru was right there along with her. It was quite a curious endeavor considering they only had their first real conversation the night before. But Yuki pushed all this aside to think about later. All he could think about was the cat and his tardiness. _Great,_ Yuki thought. _Of course the damn cat takes forever in a day to do anything_. Yuki sighed heavily and leaned against the wall. Finally Kyo emerged with a bunch of kids around him, obviously bothering him. Yuki could easily detect Kyo's seething nature.

He watched as Kyo tried to tell them – or, more correctly, yell at them – to leave him alone and that he had to go, but they wouldn't detach themselves from him. What was it about Kyo that attracted others to him? Was it his hair because it was so unnaturally orange? He was always mean to everyone. Was that the key to acceptance: being mean? Yuki walked evenly over to the other boy and his gang of followers. He knew his rival would explode at any moment and he really didn't want that to happen, especially at school. The more opportune place would be their eventual destination.

"Guys, please, kindly, back off of Kyo. We really need to get home," Yuki said in his silky voice. All eyes turned to his, including Kyo's, and Yuki couldn't help but try to disguise a faint blush. His eyes, so quizzical and questioning. What would he tell him when they got home? Yuki looked at the inquiring eyes and touched his shoulder. "Let's go," His voice so quiet it was barely audible. Surprisingly enough, Kyo walked with him in a daze. Thankfully that happened without a hitch because Yuki's hand was getting too electrified. As soon as the cat started walking away with him – the other students staring at their backs – Yuki took his hand off his shoulder as if it was on fire.

Haru, Kakeru and Tohru looked just as surprised as Kyo did, Tohru a little more overjoyed than Haru, considering her opinions on the duo. Kakeru left in a hurry after saying good-bye to Tohru while Haru simply raised an eyebrow and stared at Yuki. "Curious indeed," He muttered when Yuki got close enough to hear him. Then he leaned right into Yuki to whisper in his ear, while lightly grabbing his hand at the same time. "I'll see you later," He whispered with a smirk and turned out the door. Yuki just stood there, his large, purple eyes even wider than they normally were, his heart racing a mile a minute. What just happened? Before he could even think about analyzing it he remembered Kyo and Tohru had already started walking without him – go figure – leaving Yuki to jog a few steps to catch up.

"So what was that all about?" Kyo asked in a snarky tone.

"What was what about?" Yuki responded, slightly dazed.

"That thing between you and Haru,"

Yuki sighed a breath of relief. "I really don't know," And his reply was an answer to both the voiced question and the question not asked.

It was a lazy, sunny day at the Sohma residence. Tohru was out with Kakeru and Shigure had gone off with Ayame to get new ideas for his romance novel. How they were going to go about getting these ideas was not something Yuki particularly wanted to know. However, the absence of their housemates left Yuki and Kyo to fend for themselves. Early in the morning, Yuki had wandered off to his garden abandoning Kyo to take a catnap on the roof. His flowers were getting along marvelously, reaching out towards the sunlight. Yuki smiled faintly at them. It made him despondent to think that it would be fall soon and he wouldn't be able to take care of them again until the spring. But it was quite alright; it reminded him that everything has their season and nothing can last forever, no matter how much he wanted it to; it kept his realities in check.

Around lunchtime he made his way back home to appease his growling stomach. He was starving! When he got home he noticed Kyo sitting at the table with a bowl of soup in front of him. The smell wafted to his nose, making his stomach growl louder. He grabbed his stomach as if this would save him from the embarrassment of his speaking appetite.

"Where'd you get that?" Yuki asked, trying his hardest to be civil so as not to cause another fight.

Kyo turned his head quickly at Yuki, as if he didn't even know he was there or even came into the house. How could he not hear his stomach growling? If he didn't know, maybe he really was as dumb as Yuki thought him to be. But then again he did come in rather deftly; maybe he should cut him some slack. Kyo glared and popped one eyebrow up. This action alone caused Yuki to blush a little. When did he learn how to make him blush with a simple brow raise?

"Well wouldn't _you_ like to know," Kyo sneered. Yuki sighed and tapped his forehead to his palm. "DON'T GET THAT ATTITUDE WITH ME, YOU DAMN RAT!" He screamed, jumping to his feet and getting in his usual fight stance.

"Kyo, I don't know what kind of sick pleasure you get out of being beaten to a pulp, but-"

"I don't get beaten to a pulp! I recover quite quickly, Hatori said so!" He continued in a seemingly proud voice. Yuki just smirked and shook his head gently. Immediately after Kyo's attitude changed drastically. He was in his 'okay, Yuki, I'm going to kick your ass' mood. "Alright, your royal highness, let's do this. Today is going to be the day you meet your maker!" Then Kyo ran up to Yuki and was about to hit him in some way shape or form when Yuki extended his arm and held on to Kyo's head with his hand, holding him at arm's length. Kyo struggled against his hold as if he didn't realize his head was being held. "Quit being a wimp, Yuki. You know you're not even fighting me because you know I'm going to kick your ass today," Kyo snarled.

"No, actually," Yuki maintained an even tone. "I don't want to fight you right this second because I am hungry," He replied, letting Kyo's head go, pushing it ever so slightly whilst doing so. "Now, where is the soup?" He looked Kyo straight in the eye which seemed to surprise the other boy. He looked taken aback, as if he wasn't expecting to see Yuki's eyes just then. Yuki simply tilted his head slightly to the side, trying to figure out the cat's strange behavior. "…Kyo?" Yuki continued, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Huh?" Kyo said, snapping out of his daze.

"Soup. Where is it?" Yuki replied in phrases to the dumbfounded Kyo. All Kyo did was shrug and sit back down and point to the kitchen.

"Fridge." Was all he said and went back to his soup. Yuki nodded in his direction as he shuffled to the kitchen. _Well it's nice to know that Kyo is sort of becoming his old self again_. Yuki thought to himself as he heated up some soup.

Then, all of a sudden, a loud crash came from the front of the house, followed with a curse from Kyo. Yuki jumped a foot in the air in surprise and turned around wide eyes to stare at the doorway to the dining room. Kyo stood up as well and turned around to look at the front of the house. Both of the boys knew that it was most likely someone from their family and from the terror on Kyo's face Yuki assumed he feared it was Kagura. However, his assumptions were way off the mark when none other than Haru walked in with an eager Momiji traipsing along behind him. Yuki shook his head and pushed his hand to his forehead. What were they _doing_ here? Yuki sighed while playing a friendly looking smile on his face. He was far from patient. It wasn't even the fact that Haru was getting on his nerves; it was simply due to the fact that he was quite confused by Haru's actions, and his feeling on these actions. Were they completely unwarranted or did they have a purpose? Why _was_ Haru acting so weird? And did Yuki like how he was acting? The truth was he didn't know. All he knew that odd things were happening with Haru and Kyo and Yuki wanted nothing more than for everything to go back to normal. Back to when Kyo hated him. Back to when Haru didn't flirt more than usual. Well, it was actually kind of nice not being harassed by the cat day in and day out. Maybe just a few squabbles here and there would suffice, especially after he realized he needed the violent interaction.

"Why hello there, Yuki," Haru said amiably. He walked over to Yuki and stood next to him. Yuki raised an eyebrow and looked sideways at him. _What was going on here?_ He thought to himself. It wasn't as much the action as the feeling he got from the action. It was almost as if Haru had underlying intentions for being around Yuki so much.

"Hullo, Haru," Yuki mumbled. He wasn't exactly sure how to act in response to all this attention. It was unusual. He hung out with the other zodiac, sure, but he wasn't usually the main attraction to seek out. Haru was beginning to make Yuki feel like the main attraction. "What are you doing here?"

"Momiji wanted to see if Tohru was around and I decided it would be a wonderful idea to accompany him," Was his reply as Momiji shadowed Haru and walked over to the two boys. Kyo sighed and turned to walk up the stairs to his room, leaving his bowl where it rested on the table. _Of course, leave it to him to be a slob._ Yuki sighed after him and shook his head with a roll of his eyes. He turned to his guests.

"Well I'm sorry to tell you that Miss Honda isn't in today. She's out with a friend from school," Momiji's face fell at the news. He didn't mean to be so formal. Even to himself he sounded cold and annoyed.

Haru simply shrugged as if he hadn't even noticed. "Well that's disappointing news," He started. "Do you mind if we hang out with you instead?" He asked with a wicked grin. Yuki's heart started beating fast in a panic. Could he hang out with Haru with all these questions bubbling around? Could he trust himself?

"I-I have to do homework. Sorry," Yuki replied with a slight stutter, trying his hardest to remain normal and casual. "That and I have to fix the door you broke down," He added with a sheepish grin. Haru grinned fully back at him. Something about it gave Yuki a shiver.

"Understandable. Maybe another time then?"

"Definitely. Rain check," Yuki replied with a sideways grin and walked the two boys to the broken in door. He sighed and made his way to the phone. He might as well start calling a handyman to fix this mess.


	4. Chapter 4

_Author's Note: _Lo and behold! The prodigal story returns and after a year of absence! I'm sorry about that, guys; sometimes life takes precedent. Enjoy!**  
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**Chapter Four**

**_In Which Yuki Tries To Become Less Socially Awkward_**

The next day of school, Yuki thought seriously about what Tohru had said concerning his lack of social skills. It burned in his brain all day as he considered what people must think of him. Well, he knew they all put him up on a pedestal, but beyond that, what did they think? His only friends, outside of his family, were Tohru, Kakeru and Machi; and, with the exception of Tohru, he didn't even know them that well. _God, everyone in school must think of me as a stupid, stuck up, egotistical asshole…well maybe not stupid_. Yuki thought to himself in a worried way. Why couldn't he be more like his family members: friendly, adventurous, and easy going? Why did Yuki have to be the reject of the family?

It was in math class – where Yuki did his best thinking – that he decided what must be done. He sighed and stared at his problem sheet. _I think I must join an extracurricular activity_. He thought, a weight seeming to build up inside him. No wonder no one wanted to hang out with him: he absolutely dreaded social interaction. Granted, he was usually attacked by crazed, psychotic girls whenever he interacted with others…maybe he just needed to make sure that he didn't encounter any crazies whilst searching for the perfect after school activity. That had extreme potential of being quite difficult.

As the school day came to a close, Yuki gained sudden exuberance for his new mission. He left class in a rush, going straight to his locker to stuff his things in there while he debated which club he should try first. Should it be chess club or debate? What about poetry club or the environmental club? So many options, so little time to test them all out. His mind was full with possibilities as he started heading toward the room where the environment club was being held when he remembered he had to meet Tohru and Kyo to walk home. He rolled his eyes and pivoted on his heel, turning back to walk towards whence he came.

Lazily Yuki trekked towards the front of the school. He figured he should probably be nice and pick up the pace for Tohru and Kyo's sake, but would Kyo do the same for them? The answer was he wouldn't. He was never considerate of others, except Tohru. She was everyone's exception. So on Tohru's expense, he picked up the pace and crossed the school in less time than he expected to. He came to the exit doors and looked around the atrium for his house mates. His brow furrowed when he couldn't locate them after a moment. How hard was it to point out Kyo? He could point him out in a crowd of over ten thousand. His hair wasn't like anyone's. However, here he was, with a crowd considerably less than ten thousand, and he couldn't seem to spot him or Tohru. Yuki sighed and started towards the doors leading outside. He wanted to avoid sunlight, but apparently that wasn't going to happen.

He squinted at the sun's immediate attack on his retinas. As soon as his eyes adjusted to the relentless sun, he resumed his search. It took less than a minute to find the cat. His hair was clearly identifiable, more so in the sun. They weren't, however, sitting by the bike rack waiting for him – as he suspected – but they were shying off campus towards home. Yuki's nostrils flared in annoyance for a second as he started towards them. He called their names and they turned, looking for the voice. He caught up to them in no time at all and gave Tohru and faint smile.

"Oh, Yuki, you're ok! I thought you had wandered off somewhere and had gotten lost!" Tohru said with a wide grin of relief. He knew she was being genuine but it was hard to believe that she was truly worried since they were walking home already without him.

"No, I'm quite alright," He responded softly.

"Where's your school bag? Aren't you coming home with us? I didn't think student council was today."

"Oh, it's not. I've decided to stay a little later today."

"Then why did you have to tell us?" Kyo murmured just loud enough for Yuki to hear. Yuki glared at him and raised an eyebrow.

"It's called being polite, cat. Why don't you take some lessons and try it some time," He spat and turned to look at Tohru; her big brown eyes looked curious.

"Well do you want me to stay with you? We can walk home together after," She offered. Yuki opened his mouth to speak but just as he did he heard a different voice speaking instead of his own.

"Don't worry about it, dear Tohru. I'll stay with our Yuki and see to it that he gets home safely," Haru answered as he strolled up to Yuki and placed a confident hand on his shoulder. Kyo's attention was quickly averted to the newcomer of the group. He exhaled sharply and turned around to walk home. _What was his freaking deal_? Yuki thought to himself in frustration. Tohru turned her brown eyes on Haru and smiled.

"Ok, thank you, Haru!" She said merrily. "I'll see you at home, Yuki. I hope you'll be home by dinner; I'm making salmon," With that, she gave Yuki a pat on the cheek, since she couldn't give him a hug, and skipped after Kyo.

And she was gone, leaving a stunned Yuki alone with Haru. What was with Haru these days, anyways? He was always around. But _why_ though? Yuki shook his head and turned to the cow. He opened his mouth to speak but Haru spoke first. "So why are we staying after school?" Haru asked with a sly smirk on his face.

Yuki's mouth was still open. He immediately flushed at the response he was going to have to give. He didn't want anyone to know he was feeling insecure about his social ineptitude. "I uh…I'm going to…erm," He stuttered. Haru looked at him patiently but the smirk on his face turned into a full on grin, making Yuki blush even more.

"It's ok, Yuki, you can tell me," He chuckled in reply.

Yuki sighed. "I'm going to sign up for an extracurricular activity," He murmured, furrowing his brow and setting his jaw. Haru chuckled even more.

"But why ever would you want to do that, dear Yuki?" The manner in which he spoke reminded Yuki very much of Shigure and that irritated him a little bit. Not wanting to explain himself, Yuki shoved past Haru and entered back into the school. "Wait, Yuki! Did I say something wrong?" Haru asked, grabbing Yuki's wrist and pulling him back around to face him. His eyes had grown soft and confused. Yuki sighed and looked down at his shoes.

"No, you didn't do anything. I just didn't really want anyone to know what I was doing today," He answered apologetically. He looked up into Haru's grey eyes to discover them alight and mischievous.

"Oh! Like a secret? I'm great at keeping secrets!" Haru replied excitedly. "Can I tag along? I was wanting to find a club that I could join, too. Keeps me busy and have less time to wander off and get lost," He added with a sheepish grin. Yuki couldn't help but smile at Haru's enthusiasm. He nodded his head and turned back into the school with the cow. "What club are we attending first?" He asked eagerly.

"I was thinking the environmental club?" Yuki responded thoughtfully. Maybe here he could get a couple of gardening tips. Haru, however, scoffed at the idea saying that the people there probably weren't worth knowing. Yuki punched him in the arm. "Hey now, I happen to like the environment," He said hotly. Haru patted his arm and reluctantly agreed to accompany him wherever he wanted to go. This agreement, to Yuki anyways, seemed more than just a one day agreement. It seemed a little more permanent in a way. Either way, Yuki shrugged this thought off and kept the conversation light with Haru as they searched for the environment club. It was about five minutes of meandering before they both got the sudden idea that maybe the environment club would meet somewhere outside. So the pair traveled outside and searched around the building. They eventually stumbled across the club by the greenhouse. The meeting had already begun, of course, but they were quite excited to get visitors. And Yuki and Haru could only assume why. The club only had five members. Although they looked approachable – and like potential people Yuki could see himself being friends with – Yuki didn't feel that the environment club was the right fit for him – especially after the nagging Haru did just to get out of there.

One down. The next club they went to was the chess club, on Haru's command. He decided that since Yuki picked a lame club that he should do the same. The people in chess club were, again, friendly, but the club was, indeed, lame. Yuki almost fell asleep. He and Haru left before their first match had even ended, saying that they were coming down with the flu, and chose a different club. Yuki thought back to the list he made in math class. After that they went to the school auditorium to try out the theater club. This idea was a bad one as soon as it entered his head, Yuki realized, for once he arrived everyone went crazy and hurried around the room trying to find a dress so he could play the part of Rapunzel. Haru was all for making Yuki stay and endure the humiliation, but his stupid decision earned Yuki's fist in his face. After that Haru hightailed it out of there with Yuki.

Once securely detached from the theater kids Yuki offered another club idea. "Hey, let's try the debate team?" He asked with a small smile. Haru grinned fully back at him and led the way towards the debate team room. Once again, they had interrupted what was going on during the meeting. However, this time they interrupted what appeared to be a heated debate. Yuki and Haru took their seats at the back of room, trying not to cause further disruptions. Now this club was something he could've gotten used to. He and Haru passed notes for the final seven minutes of the debate that they had intruded about their own opinions on the topic being argued. Yet, upon being asked to join in a debate of his own, Yuki found that he faltered. His timidity struck once again. So with a heavy head, Yuki and Haru slunk out of the debate room.

"Have you found anything you liked yet?" Haru asked Yuki once they were securely out of earshot of the debate team.

Yuki sighed and shrugged a shoulder. "Not really. I mean the people are nice, I guess, but the clubs are just…too boring? I mean debate team was fun. Just not when I was asked to put my voice in," He answered with a rueful smile. Haru returned with a smirk and nodded understandingly.

"Well if you're open to it, I have a club that you might like," He replied softly and motioned with his head for Yuki to walk with him once more. The look Haru gave him was so soft and delicate but also rather intrusive. As if he knew Yuki inside and out. This, in a way, was true because Haru did know him better than anyone in his family. Either way, it was still weird that he knew him so well. It scared him, made him blush, and gave him butterflies all at the same time. In any case, Yuki raised an eyebrow and took a step closer to Haru, indicating that he'd follow. Haru grinned tenderly and turned to walk beside Yuki to this unknown room.

In no time at all – or maybe it just seemed that way since Yuki was, once again, lost in his thoughts – the two arrived at another room. Haru walked in like he owned the place leaving Yuki to follow along awkwardly. In this room everyone had their desks set up in a circle. Everyone sat in a desk except one person who stood in the center of the circle. Yuki already didn't like the sight of this. As he realized too much today, being the center of attention did not become him. Haru placed a soft hand on the small of his back and guided him to an open seat. He slid into the seat next to him and listened to the person in the middle of the circle. After a moment, Yuki realized they were in the poetry club – the Poet's Society as they liked to be called. He smiled faintly at Haru's decision because this club was completely perfect for him. It didn't take long for Yuki to figure out why.

After the girl in the center finished and took her seat, the club deliberated their interpretations on what they thought her poem was about. Yuki was okay with poetry, but didn't really excel at it. In fact he didn't even write poetry. His strengths lay with math and history – and sometimes science, depending on what unit they were studying. Haru, on the other hand, was great with poetry, or so became apparent on his own interpretation of her poem. Following everyone's opinions, someone else got to volunteer to read another poem, or so Yuki gathered when none other than Haru stood up to read a poem. The poem was short, sweet, and about grass, of all things. Despite the length, it was perfect. Yuki's jaw dropped in awe at this ability that he never knew he had. How had he known him his whole life and never knew he wrote poetry? The dissection after wasn't necessary, or so Yuki thought. Apparently even when the poem is vague and ambiguous there is still room to talk about other things such as structure. Haru didn't care about what they thought of his poem, though, as if his grabbing Yuki once more by the wrist and dragging his dumbstruck self out there was any indication. They didn't stop to talk after this one; Haru just dragged Yuki around the school for a minute or so.

"Okay, I'm pretty sure you'll really dig this club," Haru said with a beautiful, dazzling grin that went straight to his grey eyes. And with that, he escorted Yuki into the math room. Yuki raised an eyebrow and looked around the room to see about nine people split unevenly on either side of the room, scribbling furiously in their notebooks. Mr. Ajibana, the math teacher, was monitoring the students as they scribbled. "Time!" He called excitedly as the students put down their pencils. Yuki turned to Haru and raised both eyebrows with a bored look on his face.

"Is this a math study hall?" He asked quizzically.

Haru laughed and shook his head. "It's Mathletes. It's like a math competition. I thought you'd enjoy it because you're so good at math," He replaced his hand on the small of Yuki's back and nudged him forward. "Mr. Ajibana, Yuki would like to join Mathletes. Is that okay?" Yuki turned a deep shade of umber as Mr. Ajibana and the rest of the Mathletes turned to look at Haru and himself shuffle down the room.

Mr. Ajibana, however, looked thrilled. He clapped his hands together and stood up from his chair. "Yes, Hatsuharu! That'd be perfect!" He gushed happily to Haru. Yuki could feel Haru chuckle. "And Yuki! It's such a _privilege_ to have you join us! Now we'll finally have an even number on our practice teams!" His manner at this current moment reminded him a lot of a male version of Tohru.

Yuki tried his best to look flattered. He was excited, of course, to be putting his math skills to good use, but the manner in which it happened was definitely not up to par. "Thank you, Mr. Ajibana. I'm quite excited to be here as well," He replied timidly.

"Unfortunately, you came too late. We're about ready to wrap up for the day. But you're more than welcome to join us every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday," He said warmly.

Yuki simply nodded and tried to place a smile on his face. "Thank you, I definitely will," He ended and turned around to pull Haru out the room with him. Everything had been perfect until Haru had to make him the center of attention like that. No matter. It didn't make any sense to get riled up over nothing so Yuki simply pushed the thoughts out of his head and looked up at Haru to smile. "Thanks for that, Haru," The ox looked surprised and baffled. Even so, he smiled back questioningly.

"For what?"

"For helping me find an activity to do after school, besides student council, and not make fun of me for it," He said and started walking towards his locker. Luckily it was only a few feet away from the math room.

"Hey, don't mention it," He replied while shadowing Yuki to his locker. "You do realize that this hour and a half wild goose chase made me hungry right? Sushi sounds absolutely delicious," He added in a nonchalant way. Yuki rolled his eyes and shook his eyes, a grin plastered to his lips.

"Haru, you want to come home with me for dinner?" Yuki chuckled.

"Well, it all depends…what are you guys eating?" Haru asked looking innocently at Yuki. This warranted a playful punch from Yuki as he shut his locker door. "Ow! What was that for?" Haru joked while rubbing his bicep for dramatic effect.

"You know what's for dinner, Haru!" Yuki laughed and walked towards the exit. Haru followed and speculated his words, nodding after a second.

"Uh-huh. Right. I was just making sure you knew what was on for dinner,"

"Whatever," Yuki finished and started walking home with the ox in tow. Whilst walking, they ended up talking about if fish had feelings and if they enjoyed being eaten. Yuki brought up the actual act of fishing and if they purposefully took hours to bite because they knew they were going to be caught and killed. They debated this topic the whole twenty minutes it took to get home and entered the house just in time for Tohru to announce it was time for dinner.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

_**In Which Yuki Learns Haru's Intentions**_

Things definitely had changed for the better since Tohru had moved in with the Sohma's. Having a home cooked meal every day? Most people took it for granted, but when take-out is literally ordered for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, home cooked meals seem like heaven. Tohru was unquestionably an angel in disguise, not to sound too cliché. Not only was the cooking phenomenal, but the house was never dirty, as it would have been if she hadn't swooped into their lives. Yuki and Shigure weren't exactly what one would call very cleanly – well except for Yuki's room, of course; the rest of the house was always trashed, however. And both of these positive contributors to Tohru's presence didn't even compare to the sudden change in atmosphere. It seemed as if everywhere Tohru went she carried the most serene and cheerful of spirits that were contagious to be around. Everyone around her appeared to have caught her virally infectious attitude. It was like a breath of fresh air.

Despite all of these positive changes, mornings were still never a very great time of day in the Sohma household. Personalities always clashed in this time of day. Shigure and Tohru were always bright and chipper leaving Kyo and Yuki to get highly infuriated with them – well Shigure, anyway, since it was virtually impossible to get mad at Tohru. And it goes without saying that Kyo and Yuki's personalities clashed as well. Although this happened at any time of the day, it was slightly more intensified in the morning. Neither of them were morning people, making them ten times more irritable. This was definitely one of those mornings.

Luscious scents of bacon and eggs wafted up the stairs and into Yuki's room, making his mouth water and his stomach growl. He slid out of bed and put on his school uniform in a flash, eager to consume his breakfast before it got too cold. Cold breakfast was never a good way to start out the morning – and he had to have everything go swimmingly in the morning or else his whole day would be thrown off. Not only was the delicious food smells making him eager to start the day, but the prospect of what might happen. It was all up in the air, anything could happen. Of course it was like that every day, but Yuki was usually never excited about the unknown parts of his day. He typically enjoyed knowing exactly what was going to happen. But the activities of the day before buzzed around in his brain. The excitement he felt hanging out with Haru was tying his stomach in knots. And also the thrill of the potential friends he could make in Mathletes. He was anxiously anticipating the next meeting so he could socialize and mingle. This feeling seemed foreign, even to himself, because he never looked forward to mingling with other people. Either way, the anticipation for the day's proceedings were so overwhelming that Yuki could barely contain himself. He even felt a grin push itself upon his lips. He had finished getting ready in his room and was thus ready for the appetizing scents that were tickling and teasing his noise, and his stomach. His stomach growled impatiently and he hurried to his door to appease it.

His mind still raced. He thought of Haru and how affectionate he had been lately. It was very curious indeed, but the more he thought about it, the less weird it became to him. He couldn't find himself the least bit repulsed by anything that had happened within the past couple days. While it was rather odd, it seemed to make sense. Then again, Yuki and Haru always made sense together. And as much as he wanted to fight it, it wasn't going to work or change a thing.

Just as these thought were running through his head, his bedroom door swung open and inside the doorway was a very heated looking Kyo. Yuki simply raised an eyebrow at the scowling orange haired teen and nodded expectantly at him. After a second of him not answering, Yuki let out a breath. "Yes? What do you want? And have you ever heard of knocking? It's rather rude to just barge into someone's room without first checking to see if they're decent," He hadn't meant to ramble, but it all just tumbled out. Kyo's face didn't change, not for a second.

"You have a visitor," He murmured.

Yuki's brow furrowed together. He was shocked. It was very uncharacteristic of an angered Kyo not to pick a fight with the even-tempered Yuki. What was his deal now-a-days? Why was it Kyo that always told him things now? Did it have to relate about Kyo asking about him to Tohru? Did they converse about him often? Instead of voicing these concerns, he simply shook his head and shot back to the topic at hand. "Who is it?" He asked, but was too late. Kyo had already turned around and fled his doorway as suddenly as he came. It was the same as the other day: as if the room didn't have enough air for the two of them.

No matter, Yuki grabbed his backpack and shuffled downstairs to see who his surprise guest was. A loud ruckus was happening in the kitchen, much to his surprise, and very chipper voice rang out cheerily – one that wasn't Tohru's.

"Oh, Tohru, your eggs are wonderful! So light and fluffy, it seems they've been cooked in heaven!" Momiji's voice gushed in delight.

A few reactions happened on Yuki's end just then. The first reaction being that his stomach growled louder at the talk about how wonderful the food was. The second was envy that Momiji had already eaten some of his coveted breakfast. And the third was a probing jittery feeling that gave him goose bumps and butterflies. This unnatural feeling was caused by the thought of Haru – for wherever Momiji went, Haru was sure to follow, most of the time anyways. It was strange. Strange that even the thought of Haru now sent his nerves into a tizzy. Yuki couldn't solve this riddle, and it was increasingly frustrating him by the second.

His assumptions were verified as he reached the bottom of the stairs for in the kitchen he saw Haru's perfect figure leaning against the doorway. He was observing Momiji and Tohru as they gushed over each other. "Momiji quit being such a suck up. I doubt Tohru appreciates people like that," Haru said, retreating his attention to his fingernails where, Yuki assumed, he was inspecting for a single imperfection. Yuki just smirked at the white and black haired boy. Of course he had to be the one to ruin happy occasions. Or maybe he didn't. Sometimes it sure did seem that Haru was just trying to stir things up just to look for some interesting conflict.

Momiji and Tohru's faces fell into ones of horror. They looked at each other and clasped hands. "Oh, Tohru, I didn't mean to be a suck up! I hope you never think of me as that!" Momiji exclaimed as Tohru wailed, "I don't think you're a suck up, Momiji! I appreciate your compliments, they certainly are very nice!"

Yuki chuckled at the two of them as well as at Haru's detachedness towards the whole scene. At the sound of Yuki's chuckle, Haru's grey eyes instantly averted themselves to lock on Yuki's amethyst ones. Their gaze was an intense one, to say the least, for Yuki had to stop walking just to keep balance. Butterflies soared all across his stomach and his heart beat faster. He didn't want Haru to know he was feeling this way so he blinked and lifted a corner of his mouth into a smirk. "Ruining breakfast? Isn't it too early for your pessimism?" He reached Haru at the doorway and turned to enter the kitchen, sliding right past him.

Haru snorted. "It's never too early for pessimism. It's always good to start the morning with a healthy dose of it, Yuki," He responded, his voice light and silky. Yuki loved how Haru always personalized their conversations by saying his name every once in a while. It made him feel as if the conversation was meant for the two of them, and not a repeat of other conversations he'd had before.

"Oh yea? And why's that?"

"Well, it's supposed to keep everyone in check."

"What do you mean?"

"It reminds you that at any moment something bad could happen. It keeps you prepared just in case the worst happens."

As much as Yuki tried to understand what Haru meant, he couldn't. Instead he just shook his head. "You're too paranoid, you know that? Just relax and live a little," He said softly as he took a stance against the doorway.

Haru snickered at the rat. "You're one to talk! For a pessimist, you're pretty optimistic," He smirked and gazed at Yuki, making him blush softly. "What's gotten into you?" He asked with glittering eyes.

Yuki shrugged. "I don't know," He replied softly. For he really didn't know what had gotten into him. All he knew was that he woke up feeling hopeful, a feeling he hadn't felt in a long time. "I just feel like things are changing, you know? And not in a bad way, but in a good way. Like things are really going to start turning around for me," He admitted. It was so easy to be honest with Haru.

Haru raised both his eyebrows and shrugged. "Well that's good, I guess. It's good to see you happy," He replied and pushed himself off the doorway and walked into the kitchen to get some food. Yuki remained leaning against the door, not feeling too hungry. His stomach was too jittery for food. He observed the scene displayed before him: Tohru and Momiji still trying to make sure the other knew how they really felt for one another and Haru eating his mountain of breakfast serenely at the table. It looked like a scene from a movie.

Just then, a thudding came down the stairs and Kyo's red head appeared with a scowl on his face. "We're going to be late to school," He murmured in the same, solemn, lifeless tone he had used with Yuki earlier. When Yuki didn't respond immediately, he began to get agitated. "Well let's go!" He walked towards the kitchen and poked his head through the door. "All of you! Let's go!"

Tohru and Momiji jumped upon hearing Kyo's voice and began to get frantic. Tohru leapt out of her chair and grabbed her dishes. "Late?! But I still need to clean the breakfast dishes! And Yuki and Haru haven't even eaten yet!" She started running around the kitchen like a chicken with its head cut off.

Shigure poked his head into the kitchen to survey the scene Kyo instigated. When Yuki, Haru, and Kyo all raised their eyebrows and stared blankly at him, Shigure decided to dignify his behavior with an explanation. "I just wanted to make sure that Kyo wasn't about to challenge the whole house," He said serenely. After a moment's hesitation he added, "In which case, challenge accepted," With this, he furrowed his brow, tilted his face downwards and kept his eyes even with Kyo's, while his mouth formed into a smirk. He contorted his body into a martial arts pose for dramatic effect. At this, Kyo just shook his head and scoffed. He walked forward past Shigure, pushing him over in the process, and walked out the door.

Yuki and Haru sniggered to each other as Shigure tumbled into the potted plant behind him. They both grabbed their school bags while exchanging baffled looks about Kyo. Momiji and Tohru were still running around the kitchen frantically trying to clean breakfast dishes. The pair of boys glanced at each other and smirked, shaking their heads and walked out the door.

The whole day at school, Yuki's mind wandered from being curious about Kyo to being anxiously excited for the next Mathletes meeting. Unfortunately, in between that time he had to endure another student council meeting in which Kakeru introduced an idea on how to help raise awareness about the baby seal cruelty both he and Tohru were so passionate about. His idea was that in helping spread awareness, the entire school would try to put together an event that would help put a stop to it completely. It was voted and agreed upon that they would pass out flyers informing each student about baby seals. Kakeru added, with a flourish, that he would go to everyone's homeroom and educate them himself if he had to.

As he trudged himself homeward, he dreaded all the homework awaiting for him once he got there. Why was it that students had to work so hard to receive an education? Why was education mandatory? It never used to be that way; education used to be privileged. In fact, information and knowledge was so privileged that information was locked up to be hidden from the general public. The Roman Catholics for sure did that; the priests wouldn't let anyone else read from the Bible. Why was that? Yuki shook his head, trying to shake the thoughts away. He had way too much time on his hands.

When he arrived home, he smelled the fresh aroma of dinner wafting from the kitchen. Yuki took off his shoes and immediately took his backpack to his room to start on some of the homework he hadn't gotten to in homeroom. So besides homework and eating at dinner, was all there to do at night was just to watch movies? That didn't seem like a very particularly fun way to spend his evening, however he couldn't concoct anything else in his head.

Tohru finally called down for dinner. At dinner, Kyo and Shigure were unnaturally quiet while Tohru rambled on and on about Kakeru and his plight to help raise awareness. Yuki talked with her minimally on the subject since he had already been in the meeting that decided the awareness campaign.

"Hey, Yuki and Kyo!" Tohru said suddenly after a moment of silence. "Momiji and some others were planning to go see a movie tonight. Do you guys want to come along?"

Kyo and Yuki looked at each other, grimaced and shrugged. "Sure, why not?" Kyo said plainly and continued to push his peas around on his plate. Yuki agreed as well and finished eating his rice.

After dinner, the two got ready and met Tohru in the living room. The ones going had already congregated in the living room. The group consisted of Yuki, Kyo, Tohru, Kakeru, Uo, Hana, Momiji, Kisa, Hiro, and Hatsuharu. _Of course Haru would be going_, Yuki thought to himself as he pulled his jacket on. The group filed out the door and began their trek to the movie theater. They were apparently going to see an alien movie that Kakeru was convinced was amazing. Hiro, of course, was making fun of Kakeru the entire way there. No one did anything to stop him, except Kisa; Momiji prattled excitedly to Tohru while Kyo and Yuki walked in single file both with their hands shoved into their pockets. Haru maintained a stroll alongside Yuki, an indecipherable expression splayed across his features. For a few moments, the two said nothing to each other and, as per usual, Haru started the discussion. They chatted amiably on the way to theater, but despite the sweet talks, Yuki wasn't deaf to Kyo's huffs nor blind to his ever frustrated expression.

The movie was truly terrible. Yuki sat between Haru and Kyo, Momiji next to Kyo and Tohru in between Momiji and Kakeru. Uo and Hana were seated comfortably next to Kakeru. Hiro and Kisa were on the other side of Haru. Tohru actually thought parts of the movie were scary and Kakeru had taken liberty to consoling her. Yuki and Kyo looked at her protectively. They were both thankful for Momiji because he too had gotten scared at exactly the same times Tohru did causing the two of them to completely disregard Kakeru's existence and cling onto each other, which was hard to do without hugging each other, mind you. Haru had tried tiptoeing his fingers towards Yuki but Yuki had managed to be completely oblivious to his actions. Hiro and Kisa were happily cuddled together.

"Well that was a complete waste of film," Uo had announced once the movie had finished and the group started to stand up.

Kyo scoffed in agreement. "Sure was. I could shit better movies than that piece of garbage," He added.

Tohru looked at the two of them in amazement. "What?! That movie was so scary! I'm so happy I had Momiji and Kakeru next to me to protect me!"

Hana gave Tohru a loving pat on the shoulder. "Yes, it was very scary," She said sympathetically, with a caring smile on her lips.

Days passed and things were getting weird, to say the least. For starters, Haru had been coming around a lot more to see Yuki; it wasn't that Yuki minded, Haru's company was always welcomed, it was just weird. After years of not associating very often except at family functions, the newfound attention was a little alarming. And it wasn't just that he was coming around, it was that he was doing weird things. For example, he had taken to staring at Yuki in such a way that he found it difficult to return his gaze, a problem he had never had previous. Another thing was the poetry. After Yuki had learned that Haru had written poetry in his spare time, Haru had had a hard time keeping it to himself; it didn't take Yuki to realize why: it seemed that the majority of poems Haru had written had alternate meanings that appeared to be all about Yuki. He wasn't sure how to feel about that one. On one hand, Haru was great and wonderful, on the other hand he didn't know just how he felt back towards Haru, mostly because he had never stopped to give it any thought. Rather, he had given it some thought in the past month or so that this had been going on, but he hadn't given it serious thought.

_Maybe it was time to have these thoughts?_ Yuki wondered to himself while he lay on his back with his head hanging upside down off his bed, a book in his hands. Haru sat comfortably next to him, leaning against his bed and "reading" a book of his own. Yuki decided against the thought. Maybe he was overreacting. He shook his head in hopes it would shake his thoughts away.

"What are you thinking about Yuki?" Haru asked with a slight tilt in his head towards Yuki.

Yuki rolled over on his stomach and placed his book on the floor. "Nothing," He responded.

"Why don't we go for a walk, hmmm?" Yuki smiled kindly and nodded his head.

It was early evening, a little before dinner, when they decided to go for a walk. The sun was pretty deep into the sky, playing with the color spectrum and sending pinks and purples and blues and oranges across the clouds. It was kind of chilly, but Yuki didn't notice yet. He was more concerned with the butterflies collecting his insides into a knot. The boys discussed colors of the sunset and Yuki educated Haru on how the colors in the sky got to be that way. It was questioned that if the colors of the sunset were caused by pollution and dust, were there vivid and vibrant sunsets back in dinosaur times? It was decided upon a definite maybe because of volcanic eruptions and dust and ash from that. It was a completely perfect conversation, nothing too personal, just as Yuki preferred it, at least for now.

They started heading back home for dinner. The sky was almost fully dark by then and Yuki was starting to get chilled. Why hadn't he thought to bring a jacket? He was in the middle of cursing himself for shivering when Haru started taking off his jacket and putting it upon Yuki's shoulders. The mouse's amethyst eyes met the ox's grey ones and for a second Yuki's breath got caught in his throat. He shook his head and smiled.

"Thanks," He said quietly as he turned and started walking again. _Maybe I should think about this_, he thought as he felt Haru catch up. The two didn't say anything for a few paces and all of a sudden Haru's fingers started creeping towards Yuki's. They weren't too far from home at his point. Yuki was thankful because he wasn't sure his insides could take much more of being knotted. It felt like he had done way too many sit-ups and his abs got a cramp in them. Maybe he needed to go to the doctor. By now, Haru had interlaced all of his fingers with Yuki's so they were now holding hands. Haru continued to say nothing and Yuki kept reminding himself to breathe. When they finally reached Yuki's house, Haru didn't let go of his hand, instead he held onto it and stepped in front of Yuki. There he was, standing before him and looking down at him very intensely. Yuki felt small and weak. His heart was pounding so hard that he was sure Haru could hear it and he was also sure he could see his insides twisting around each other.

"Yuki," Haru started in such a soft, low voice that Yuki leaned forward just slightly enough to hear more clearly what Haru was about to say. But instead of saying something more, Haru slowly began leaning his face down towards Yuki. Yuki froze in place as he noticed Haru's lips softening a little more, relaxing in such a way that made Yuki aware of what was coming next. Yuki tilted his head back a little just as Haru's lips brushed against Yuki's. There was a breath before Haru's lips grew firmer and took Yuki's in his control. It was a nice, slow, massaging kiss that made Yuki lightheaded. Haru pulled away and Yuki stood there in a daze, not sure what to think. Haru smiled down at Yuki and gave his hand a little squeeze. "I'll leave you be tonight. See you tomorrow," He whispered in Yuki's ear as he pulled back again and let go of his hand.

Yuki blinked and turned towards his house. He looked up at the house and saw the figure of the cat looking out his window at him. As soon as the two made eye contact, he disappeared.


	6. Chapter 6

_Author's Note:_ So, don't worry! I haven't forgotten about this story! It's been on the back of my mind and since I got stuck on Chapter 5 it took a little longer. However, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with this chapter. It was a lot of fun to write and I think it shapes how the rest of the story will go. I know Yuki and Kyo are frustrating right now, but don't worry it gets better. Don't get attached to Haru and Yuki, even though they're cute. As aforementioned, this is a Yuki/Kyo story. Anyhow, enough blabbing. Enjoy the chapter! Make sure you review!

**Chapter Six**

_**In Which Yuki Gives Haru His Answer**_

Yuki couldn't believe what had just happened. He wandered into the house and up to his room in a daze. Was now the right time to think about it? Surely he knew a glimpse of Haru's intentions by now, so it seemed highly appropriate, and respectful to Haru, that he at least toyed with the idea in his mind. He first thought about the kiss and..._wow_! How did Haru learn to kiss like that?! Granted, the last time Yuki had been kissed, it had been by Haru when they were children, but he had gotten so much better. It took his breath away just thinking about it! He brought his fingers gently to his lips to make sure that they were still there. It took a second to realize that he was still wearing Haru's jacket and buried himself into Haru's scent at the acknowledgement of it. He smiled and swooned and sighed. _Great_, he thought, _it's good to know I turn into a teenage girl when I get kissed_. He rolled his eyes at himself. Because of his reaction did that mean he liked Haru? Well of course he did! The boy was only there for him throughout most everything in his life, not to mention the fact that he knew him better than anyone. If he got together with anyone, wouldn't it be with Hatsuharu? Didn't he owe that much to him? He threw himself onto his bed, on his back and looking up at his ceiling. He drew a deep breath and closed his eyes. It was apparent that he did have feelings for Haru; how much, he didn't know, but they existed and they were pretty intense. Didn't he owe it to himself to at least explore these feelings?

"Yuki! Dinner!" Tohru's angelic called up the stairs to awaken Yuki from his dreamlike state. He sat up and shook his mess of silver hair, hoping this action would shake away the euphoria he was feeling. Standing up, he realized that he felt weightless to himself. He walked downstairs, still in a trancelike daze, he was sure a hopeless grin was still plastered on his face. He made his way to the table, somehow, and sat down. He wasn't really aware that all eyes were on him, all except Kyo's, nor did he really even care. He pulled the sleeves of the jacket over his hands and brought his hands to his face. He was acting completely irrationally, but the cares he did not give were ubiquitous.

Kyo cleared his throat and Yuki immediately was pulled from himself. Yuki looked down at the jacket and slowly he brought his eyes to Kyo. He looked towards Kyo and instantly their eyes met. He wasn't expecting that the cat's crimson eyes would instantly lock with his, and found he was unable to look away after he was appalled to find what emotions lay apparent within the crimson orbs he became familiar with possessing a lack of emotions. But instead of finding a mask painted over his brilliant and stunning eyes, he found pain, hurt, anger, and defeat. Yuki had never seen such eyes come from the cat and he wondered what could inspire such feelings. The expression was devastatingly heartbreaking and Yuki could do nothing but stare back into those eyes returning with a look of confusion in his own usually masked eyes. What could have happened to Kyo that he could let his guard down like this? He always had that damaged demeanor, but he never dropped the mask from his face as Yuki rarely dropped the mask around his. But now Kyo was an open book of pained emotions and he couldn't fathom why. He remembered how Kyo was looking out his window at his encounter with Haru just minutes before and realized he hadn't even given two thoughts as to why he was so quick to look away. What could the cat possibly care about Yuki's potentially burgeoning love life? Maybe he was against gay love? Looking into his eyes he realized that that wasn't the right answer. He looked down at his plate and began to stir the rice around with his chopsticks, unable to notice any sort of appetite.

Dinner was weird, to say the least. He didn't pay any mind to Tohru and Shigure discussing, at length, how he could turn his romance novel from sounding like a porno to an actual story with an actual plot. But more than that, his good mood was overshadowed by Kyo's downcast one. It perturbed him that it was ruffling him that much, but he didn't make it seem like it had. However, he was sure it was pretty apparent that he wasn't as up in the clouds as he had been before. Kyo was as silent as Yuki, but Yuki dared not look back up at the other boy despite the fact that he could feel his eyes on him most of dinner. It wasn't long of Yuki pushing his food from one side of his plate to the other before he decided he didn't really want to be at the dinner table anymore. He stood up and was surprised to find Kyo do the same. The two boys took their dishes to the kitchen without saying a word and parted their separate ways to their bedrooms across the hall from the other. Yuki was off to try and escape to find comfort in his homework while Kyo was off to…well he didn't know what Kyo was up to. Probably some more brooding.

Homework provided little solace or distraction from the thoughts whirring around in his brain. He was still euphoric about Haru and their kiss, but what of Kyo and his heart wrenching expression? What was Kyo thinking? Did it have something to do with his odd behavior? He had noticed that Kyo had been becoming more and more irritable lately. He had thought back to when he started noticing it again and realized it was right around the time Haru started coming around more often. Weird, he always thought the two of them got on pretty well. With a heavy, jumbled, mixed up head Yuki finally drifted off into slumber.

Yuki woke up still in Haru's jacket. It brought an instant smile to his face as he rose out of bed and began preparing for school. He left the jacket on over his uniform shirt, grabbed his backpack and walked down the stairs to get some breakfast. Kyo was already downstairs, which was unusual considering he wasn't an early riser. Ever. He sighed and rolled his eyes at Yuki and walked out the kitchen and into the study. Tohru smiled and greeted him brightly as normal. Yuki returned the smile full in return.

"It's good to see you in such a good mood in the morning, Yuki!" She said cheerfully. "Is that a new jacket?"

Yuki didn't know how to respond. Did he tell her about Haru and the kiss or did he keep it to himself? Maybe it was best to keep it on the down low since he didn't know where this interaction was going yet. "No, it's not mine. I just borrowed it from a friend and I forgot to take it off, I guess," He explained, still not taking it off and helping himself to a plate of scrambled eggs Tohru had already prepared. _Did boys borrow each other's jackets or was that just girls?_ Yuki plagued himself with more worry that he had said the wrong thing and made himself more effeminate than he already was. The trio made their way to school not saying much; well, Kyo and Yuki were not saying much, but Tohru was rambling amiably oblivious to the two brooding lads on either side of her. The boys just nodded and grunted when necessary, both apparently too wrapped up in their own thoughts to provide much better answers. Yuki certainly didn't trust himself talking especially around Kyo, not now anyway.

When they got to school, Kyo quickly trailed away from the group and Yuki politely accompanied Tohru to her locker before stopping at his. Upon reaching his own locker, he found none other than Haru leaning up against with a smirk on his face. Yuki was half aware that the jacket Haru had lent him was still upon him, but wasn't sure the full reason for the smirk which played upon Haru's lips. Yuki walked right up to Haru and grinned, suddenly the troubles on his mind dissipated, mostly.

"Excuse me, sir, I need access to my locker," Yuki said with a smile.

Haru grinned in return and pushed himself off the locker and right in front of Yuki's face. He planted his lips gently against Yuki's only to have Yuki return the kiss. He pulled away all too soon. "So, like my jacket, do you?" He replied in a light tone as he maneuvered aside to allow Yuki to get to his locker.

"It is rather comfortable, I suppose," Yuki returned as he opened his locker and shoved his backpack inside. "Not as worn as I usually prefer them," He added playfully, his eyes twinkling as he looked over at Haru.

Haru sighed. "Well I guess it's a good thing that it's my jacket and not yours," He reached out to where Yuki was and instead of pulling him in for another kiss, as the romantic side of Yuki suspected would happen, he started pulling the jacket off of Yuki. It was off in less than two seconds. Haru held it in his hands with a slightly disappointed look on his face. "My, my, my, dear Yuki, and I thought it would take more for you to get your clothes off," He clicked his tongue and shook his head, trying not to smile.

Yuki chuckled. "That's all that's coming off…for now. Buy me dinner and a movie and we'll talk about taking off more," He pleased to find Haru beamed, his smile stretching all the way up to his eyes. He met the smile with the same enthusiasm. The two boys stared at each other for a beat before the bell rang and woke them out of their trance with each other. Yuki blushed. "I've got to get to class," He started to walk past Haru to get to homeroom. He knew Haru's homeroom was the opposite direction, but Haru turned around and grabbed Yuki's hand lightly and began to walk alongside him. This only proved to turn Yuki into a darker shade of red, his face now resembling an apple. Haru chuckled.

They reached Yuki's classroom and Haru stopped Yuki with a tug of his hand before he could enter the room. Yuki looked at Haru with big eyes. Then, for the third time in twenty-four hours, Haru's lips gently caressed Yuki's in such a way that his butterflies resurfaced from the night before. "See you later," Haru murmured in his ear as he let his hand drop from Yuki's and pivoted to turn the other way. Yuki smiled like a goon for a second before entering the room, but then remembered last night's events. He didn't want everyone staring at him like he was a madman, so he painted a mask over his features so as to avoid questioning.

It was during homeroom that he realized that he wasn't ready for everyone's attention to be on him and Haru, especially when he wasn't even sure what was going on. It wasn't as if he hated Haru and wanted nothing to do with him, he just didn't want everyone asking questions or thinking he was weird. He hated that other's opinions of him affected him so much.

Haru met Yuki outside of class and walked him to his next one. He tried holding hands with Yuki, but Yuki made his hands unavailable to the other. Haru made it seem like he wasn't trying to do anything and didn't say anything about it. It wasn't until lunch that Haru's pouty nature took over because Yuki was trying not to draw attention to him and Haru. Still, Haru said nothing about it, just flared his nostrils and huffed, it kind of reminded Yuki of Kyo. He smiled slightly to himself. Unfortunately, this made Haru stand off a little bit the rest of the day, much to Yuki's disappointment.

Mathletes was that afternoon. Yuki made his way to the Math room with new problems on his mind that he didn't really want to think of because he had some first day jitters. It was the first day he was going to Mathletes and while he knew he would be fine, it was his first extracurricular activity the he was going to voluntarily and not just because he got elected in. It was completely new and he didn't really know what to expect, that only added to his nerves. Mr. Ajibana greeted Yuki warmly and guided him to his seat next to this boy he had seen a couple of times, but whose name had seemed to slip his mind. There were only two girls that were in the club, the rest were all boys. A fleeting thought wondered if that would upset Haru, but it disappeared as quickly as it had formed.

Mathletes was pretty intriguing, at least to Yuki anyways. They did math for a solid hour and a half, and it was apparently a race to solve problems. Yuki aced all of the questions and won a few times for his team. The boy he was seated next to was named Kane and he seemed to be in Yuki's year. They made a pretty decent team. Apparently they went around to different schools and competed. Competitions? For math? It all seemed a little weird, but it was a weird that Yuki could get into so he didn't mind.

When the hour and a half was up, Yuki packed up his belongings and started to mentally prepare himself for the walk home. He knew he was going to be plagued with thoughts concerning Haru and Kyo and he wished more than anything that he could figure this all out. If there was an "easy answer" button for life, Yuki sure could use it. He walked out of the room and jumped a couple inches back when he found none other than Haru sitting against one of the lockers next to the door.

"Haru?" Yuki said, flabbergasted. At that, Haru stood up and brushed off his butt from sitting on the floor.

"God, that took forever. My ass was starting to get numb," Haru returned, stretching a little.

"What are you doing here?"

"Well, waiting for you, of course. I swear, Yuki, sometimes you can be a little dense," He answered with a wry smile as he pointed to his head.

"I thought…I thought…" Yuki stuttered in confusion.

"You thought what?" He asked, taking a step forward towards Yuki. He lightly started to wrap his fingers around Yuki's hand and brought his face just inches from Yuki's.

Yuki had a little trouble breathing at that point, the last thing he was thinking about was what he thought earlier that day. "I thought you were mad at me," He whispered eventually.

"Me? Mad at you? Oh my dear, Yuki, I thought you were mad at _me_!"

Yuki breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "Oh," He decided it was time to start walking home, dinner would be ready soon and Yuki was starting to get hungry. Haru followed along faithfully, his hand still holding Yuki's. He waited until they got out the school to begin the discussion.

"So, are you?" Haru inquired softly.

"Am I what?"

"Mad at me?"

"Of course not!" Yuki wasn't sure if he should continue opening up to Haru about this or if he should wait until Haru brought up where this was headed, unfortunately his mouth didn't have the same questions. "I just didn't know where this was headed and I didn't want to show us off to the whole world if this is…not something," Yuki blabbered out and trailed off at the end. He lowered his eyes to the ground, afraid that Haru would laugh at him for being a hopeless romantic. What Haru did next was the complete opposite of what he was expecting. They were far enough off the grounds that no one they knew was wondering about. Haru stopped and pulled Yuki to a stop with him. Yuki stumbled backwards and steadied himself using Haru's shoulder. He turned to look at Haru and got lost for a moment in his grey eyes.

"Yuki," He started, his voice low and unwavering. His eyes seemed to be endless pools of patience, and at the very edge he could see excitement afoot. All of this made Yuki nervous and restless, his breath was already having trouble happening. He was surprised he wasn't shaking and falling over and more, he was scared to think of what his voice would sound like if he had to speak at that moment. "Do you want this to go somewhere?" Haru finished, he leaned in a little as if he was impatient for Yuki to give an answer.

"What do you mean, Haru?" Yuki responded, knowing what he wanted to hear but not what Haru was expecting of him. He wanted so desperately to not look like an idiot for something more if the something more wasn't what Haru intended this whole time. However, he figured if Haru didn't want the same thing, he wouldn't have started anything.

At this, Haru grinned and took another half-step closer to Yuki. He reached up and stroked his face, the interaction sending chills down Yuki's spine. "Yuki, I want you, more than anything. I want to be with you," He said breathlessly. "Will you be with me? Will you be my…" He hesitated and looked to the ground for a second and reunited his eyes with Yuki's. "…boyfriend?" He murmured the last word, but Yuki still beamed at it.

"What do you think?" Yuki retorted in a joking manner before he leaned towards Haru. He wanted to make Haru get butterflies by his kiss as he did the night before and earlier that day. It seemed to work because Haru's breath had an erratic pattern until Yuki bridged the gap separating their lips. He met their lips gently and pressed them together in semi-firm manner. Yuki wrapped his free arm around Haru's waist and pulled him closer. He felt Haru breathe deep and sink into the kiss before Yuki made his kisses a little shorter and dwindled to just pecks. He pulled away and smiled happily.

"Does that mean yes?" Haru whispered breathlessly, a smile plastered to his face as well. Yuki chuckled and nodded his head.

"Of course, Haru," Yuki replied with a smile. He started walking again and was slightly thankful that Kyo wasn't there to ruin the moment.

The two boys continued their walk home, not saying much but instead smiling a lot more than they normally would have. Yuki had invited Haru to stay for dinner, and he agreed cheerfully. He was toying in his head how he would tell his housemates that he had a boyfriend. He had never pictured himself with a boyfriend before; he didn't know he swung that way until Haru kissed him. Would they be okay with it? He wasn't too concerned about Shigure because he was sure that there was some weird triangle between him, Hatori, and Ayaa; they were just _too_ flirtatious and comfortable around each other and that wasn't normal with most people, there had to be something else going on. But would Tohru be affected? Would she alienate them? What about Kyo? Would he act even weirder because of it? Would he be so disgusted with him that he wouldn't even want to speak to him again? Yuki couldn't understand why Kyo's opinion mattered so much to him, but it did. In fact, it was in the foreground of his thoughts on the opinions of his and Haru's newfound relationship.

They arrived home in no time at all, to no aid of Yuki's nerves. He didn't let on that he was completely petrified of telling his housemates what was new in his life. Haru gave his hand a little squeeze and guided them into the dining room. Yuki let go of Haru's hand and walked into the kitchen to find Tohru bubbling around the kitchen cooking. He was surprised to also find Kakeru standing next to her, jabbering away about baby seals and the progress her had already made with his campaign. _Oh great_, he thought to himself, _I'm supposed to be giving this huge news tonight and we have a house guest. Do I even want him know about it_? The answer was that everyone would know about it sooner or later, so what did it matter if Kakeru figured out now or later?

Tohru whirled around and saw Yuki standing against the doorway. She beamed at him warmly. "Yuki! You're home! How was Mathletes?" Tohru asked happily.

Yuki smiled back at her. "It was fun. I met someone new that was pretty interesting," Yuki said. He was quickly joined by Haru. "Oh, and is it okay if one more joins us for dinner?" He asked Tohru after a quick look at Haru.

Tohru smiled and nodded. "Of course! Haru's always welcome with us! I'm so happy you made a new potential friend, Yuki!"

Yuki grinned and pulled Haru upstairs into his room. They sat on the bed next to each other, still holding hands.

"So what does Yuki Sohma do for kicks once he gets home from school?" Haru asked, squeezing Yuki's hand a little. Yuki smiled a little and blushed.

"Not much," He started, running a hand through his silver hair. "Mostly just homework, and sometimes read," He didn't want Haru to know that he was such a geek, but it was a little late for that.

"Well, how about we switch it up a little bit," Haru breathed and leaned in closer to Yuki. He placed his hand on his cheek and turned Yuki's face to face his. After a breath, Haru's lips was upon Yuki's once more and they were once again making out. It ended all too soon with Tohru's voice calling for everyone to come down to dinner. Yuki's heart sped up as he leapt off the bed, he was so nervous. "Are you okay, Yuki?"

Yuki ran a nervous hand through his hair and nodded. "Yea, yup. Just fine. I'm just really hungry," Yuki said really quick as he went to the door. He was determined to beat Kyo down to the dinner table so he wouldn't suspect they were doing anything besides talking. Why did he care so much?! He shoved the thoughts from his mind and moved towards the door. "You coming?"

Haru nodded dazedly and stood up. "Yea, sure," He said slowly as he followed Yuki out the room and down into the dining room. Yuki breathed a huge sigh of relief when he found Kyo not down at the table. He heard his footsteps coming slowly down the stairs while he and Haru sat down next to each other. Haru placed a hand on Yuki's leg, giving him butterflies. He looked over at Haru and grinned.

Shigure came in with a flourish followed by Kyo who trudged along behind him. Yuki looked into his lap, he couldn't look at him. Everyone sat down at the table. Tohru was all smiles, and so was Kakeru, as she started serving everyone dinner. "So how was everyone's day?" Shigure asked the entire table. Kyo just grunted in response.

Haru was the first to speak. His smile was big and goofy as he exclaimed, "Yuki and I are boyfriend and…boyfriend!" Yuki looked at Haru with large eyes and blushed. Kyo's eyes went instantly to Yuki and everyone else looked at them as well. Haru gave Yuki's hand a squeeze. He looked at him and smiled. Yuki tried to give him a reassuring smile back, but he wasn't sure. Of course he was happy about it, but he wished it could have waited a little longer. He was terrified to look at Kyo, or at anyone, so he just looked at his food and tried to push it around the plate as he did the night before.

"Well," Tohru said slowly as if she was trying to form words that were positive. "That's so great!" She finished with a smile. She and Kakeru both exchange a smile to each other and turned to face Haru and Yuki. It comforted Yuki a little that Tohru and Kakeru were okay with him and Haru.

"Oh, dear Yuki! I didn't know you liked boys! That's so cute! Well, you and Haru make a fantastic couple!" Shigure gushed, making Yuki turn a deep shade of umber. It was Yuki's turn to give Haru's hand a squeeze. He looked over at Haru and gave him another smile. Haru seemed comforted by that, or so Yuki thought because he leaned over and kissed his cheek.

Kyo cleared his throat, just as he did the night before, and Yuki had to fight himself not to look up. He couldn't, no wouldn't, look at him. Haru did, apparently. "What's wrong Kyo?" Haru asked gently.

"Nothing," Kyo said, his voice a little shaky. Yuki had never heard his voice sound like that before. It was weird, he didn't even have to look at Kyo to know what was going on. He was sure his eyes were the exact same as they were the night before.

The rest of dinner was filled with conversation about Shigure. Kakeru apparently was fascinated with everything about Shigure, which did nothing for his ego. Shigure bragged all about himself and what he did with his days and time as a writer. He mentioned the books he had written and what they were about. Kakeru ate it all up with a smile. For someone who didn't know Shigure and how perverted he was, Yuki was sure that Shigure was pretty interesting. To Yuki, it was just background noise for his thoughts.

After dinner, Yuki sent Haru out so he could start on his homework. "I'll see you tomorrow," Yuki said softly. He smiled at Haru reassuringly as he leaned in for another kiss. Haru grinned back before their lips met one more time. Haru wrapped a hand around Yuki's waist and pulled him right up against his body. Yuki sighed into the kiss and pushed back against him, loving the contact. Haru pulled away and gave him a quick peck.

He looked at Yuki and beamed. "I'll see you tomorrow," He answered back as he turned away to walk home.

"Be careful and don't get yourself lost," Yuki called after him. To which, Haru just looked over his shoulder and grinned back at the rat. Yuki went inside and started on his homework, trying not to think about anything else except the task at hand.


	7. For the Readers

Hey readers! I understand I am TERRIBLE at updating, but my life has been hectic. What I had previously saved on the upcoming chapter got deleted on my laptop. After that, I've had a really hard time being on track with what I wanted this chapter to be. I'm sorry it's been so slow, but I fully intend to put more effort into my writer's block :P I will not say that this story will be updated this week, but it will be SOON! Thank you to all who has reviewed, who has favorited, and who has followed this story. It means a lot and makes me not want to give up on this story (I made it my New Year's Resolution to finish this story this year lol) Story will be back soon :D


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